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Golden Globes reflections from a city on fire: From joy to heartbreak in LA

Published: 21 Jan. 2025, 20:00

Drue Kataoka is founder and CEO of Drue Kataoka Art Studios.

Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, is a senior fellow at the Milken Institute.


How distant our celebrations in Seoul, Tokyo and elsewhere in Asia now seem today amid the devastation of large parts of Los Angeles by wildfires.

The L.A. neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades and Altadena have been pretty much burned to the ground. Tens of thousands of Angelenos have faced evacuation orders, thousands of homes have been destroyed and Hollywood’s film industry has been disrupted in a manner perhaps once only conceived of as part of a fictitious disaster movie.

Traditionally, the Golden Globes kick off an awards season that culminates with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Oscars ceremony a few months later. This year the Oscars — if not canceled — will no doubt be reimagined, perhaps scaled back or transformed into a tribute, fundraiser and benefit for firefighters, first responders and the tens of thousands who have lost homes or even loved ones.

Amid a city reeling from the fires, we also pause to share these pre-wildfires reflections from the Golden Globes. It was a groundbreaking evening of firsts and excellence for Asian and Asian American creatives at the 82nd Annual Golden Globes. The epic samurai series “Shogun” (2024-) swept all four categories it was nominated for, while Ali Wong became the first actress ever to win back-to-back Globes for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television.

Anna Sawai also made history as the first Asian actress since 1981 to receive the Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Series – Drama award, and director Jon Chu’s “Wicked” (2024) took home the coveted Best Cinematic and Box Office Achievement. Even Asian culinary brilliance was front and center as Chef Nobu Matsuhisa of Nobu Restaurant fame crafted a bespoke menu for the glittering ceremony. Presenters of Asian and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) heritage, including Awkwafina, Ke Huy Quan, Mindy Kaling, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Auliʻi Cravalho, further underscored the evening’s diverse representation.

Other Asian and AAPI nominees included Payal Kapadia for Best Director for “All We Imagine as Light” (2024), which was also nominated for Best Non-English Language Film; “Moana 2” (2024) for Best Animated Feature; “Twisters” (2024), directed by Lee Isaac Chung, for Best Cinematic and Box Office Achievement; the second season of “Squid Game” (2021-) for Best TV Series – Drama; and Maya Erskine for Best TV Actress – Drama.

In 2021, we raised concerns in a NextShark article about how that year’s Golden Globes failed to address the alarming rise in anti-Asian hate. A few weeks later, we hoped the Oscars — whose theme was “Stories Matter” — would take the lead, but our community’s stories were largely overlooked.

Now, three years later, it is clear some progress has been made. With Asian and AAPI artists finally receiving well-deserved recognition, we celebrate these successes while continuing to push for more opportunities and representation in Hollywood — and beyond.

One memorable aspect of the evening was the heartfelt humility displayed by the charismatic actors Tadanobu Asano and Anna Sawai. Asano, relatively new to many American viewers, introduced himself by saying, “Wow [...] maybe you don’t know me. So, I’m an actor from Japan.” Meanwhile, Sawai gave one of the night’s shortest speeches, graciously thanking voters and playfully conceding that she would still “vote for Kathy Bates any day.” Later on Jimmy Kimmel Live, she added, “I’m no Demi Moore [...] No one knows me. They don’t want to hear who I want to thank.”

While some will interpret their words as shockingly self-effacing, they also reflect the cultural backgrounds and personal journeys of two global stars who are not yet household names in the United States. These types of moments celebrate the diversity of acceptance speeches — reminding us that not everyone embraces the spotlight in the same way.

The Los Angeles fires underscore the critical need to come together in unity and common cause to provide solace and support for the rebuilding of a beautiful and creative city, while celebrating the diversity of communities that breathe life into its resilient spirit.